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A Saskatoon police officer was not negligent when they dropped the leash of the police dog, leaving the animal to bite a hiding suspect, according to Saskatchewan’s Serious Incident Response Team.
In a report released on Wednesday, Greg Gudelot, the civilian executive director of the police watchdog organization, wrote that despite the fact the suspect’s arm suffered both muscle and nerve damage that required surgery to repair, the evidence indicates that the officer’s actions fall “far short” of demonstrating wanton or reckless disregard for the victim’s life or safety.
Read more:
- Regina plainclothes officer fatally shot suspect involved in homicide investigation: SIRT
- SIRT investigating after Mountie hits 16-year-old pedestrian with vehicle
- Death in Regina police custody likely caused by attempted drug smuggling: SIRT
According to the report, during the early morning hours of September 21, 2023, officers were pursuing a suspect who had driven a Jeep into a park and crashed into a bench, taking off on foot after the vehicle was disabled. The officer–who was not named in the report–was using a dog to track the suspect, and had the animal attached to a 20-foot leash.
When the officer approached a four-foot wooden fence in between two garages, the report indicated that the officer took a look over the fence with a flashlight and, according to the report, did not notice the suspect who was hiding on the other side. After searching nearby, the dog ultimately jumped over the fence, and the officer dropped the leash in order to climb over as well.
While the dog was uncontrolled, it discovered and attacked the suspect, causing “a significant bite wound” to his left forearm.
The officer then punched the suspect once to get him to stop fighting back against the animal that was biting him. The report indicated that the punch was both “reasonable and necessary.”
The Serious Incident Response Team said the evidence gathered during its investigation established that the contact between the dog and the suspect was “incidental,” and occurred during an attempt to track the suspect, rather than as the result of a deliberate order to attack.
“In the circumstances of this incident, these actions fail to demonstrate either a wanton or reckless disregard for the safety of the affected person, or an unreasonable use of force based on the single strike delivered during his arrest,” the report concluded.
“Accordingly, there are no grounds to believe any police officer committed any Criminal Code offence during the course of this incident and no charges will be laid.”
The Serious Incident Response Team is mandated to investigate incidents where a person dies or suffers serious injury while in police custody or as a result of police actions. The team also investigates incidents of alleged sexual assault or interpersonal violence involving police officers in the province.
Editor’s note: this story has been amended to better reflect the nature of interaction between the police dog and the suspect.
